Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Time for the sixth installment of one of my favorite franchises. For me, this is one of the movies in the series that seems to fall a little bit under the radar. I mean, not much happens over the course of most of the film, though a lot happens in the film’s final act. Most of the movie is about building and developing characters and their relationships. Except for that final third of the movie, in which a lot happened. Most notable was the death of Dumbledore. As always, I loved Michael Gambon’s interpretation of the character, and it was a really heartbreaking part of the film.
I needn’t say that Radcliff, Grint, and Watson were all on top of their game for this movie. They were now firmly established in their characters, and experienced enough to turn in some really great performances. I especially loved Watson in this movie. In particular, there was a scene where she is in tears because Ron is shamelessly snogging with another new girl. Her emotion is real, and in my mind, that is where she changed from a child actress to an adult actress. She was amazing.
Now, I feel like Rupert Grint keeps getting the short end of the stick. The character of Ron Weasley seems to be the most unloved of the three. But, Grint is just playing the character as he is directed to, and he does a fine job. Here, in The Half-Blood Prince, had three little sub-plots that were fun, but not essential. The first was his position as keeper on the Gryffindor quidditch team. The second was his association with Lavender Brown, and third is his drinking of a love potion. I actually loved Ron in that third one. Grint’s comedic acting was brilliant, and it is a memorable part of the film for me.
So the one thing I found a little disappointing was that one of the overall mysteries of the film was the true identity of the Half-Blood Prince. It was Snape, but, the movie never explains WHY it was Snape. He just kind-of randomly steps up at the end and says, “Yup, it was me!” You see, the book explains it, and I think the movie should have done the same. So, Snape’s parents were a witch named Eileen Prince and a muggle named Tobias Snape, making their son, Severus, a half-blood. But the movie just drops it like a little bolt of lightning from out of nowhere, right near the end of the movie. It wouldn’t have taken much to do a little explanation, just a line or two. But the movie never does that. Too bad for anyone who has not read the book.
So needless to say that the last act of the movie is my favorite part of the film. From the time where Harry and Dumbledore go to retrieve the locket horcrux until the end of the movie, I am just amazed at the acting, the plot, the action, the drama, the visuals… everything! First there is the spectacular acting of Michael Gambon. I am nearly in tears when he is drinking the torture potion. When he is begging to be killed, and yet continues to open his mouth for Harry to pour more of it down his throat is simply heart-wrenching. And then after the really scary inferi attack, when Dumbledore is wielding wild fire with his wand, is just visually stunning. So cool!
And then back at the school, we even get one of Draco Malfoy’s most dramatic scenes in the entire franchise. Again, this was the movie where I stopped seeing him as a child actor, and started seeing him as an accomplished adult actor. I’m so glad he got that seriously intense moment.
As far as I’m concerned, the overall quality of the franchise has never wavered. People like to pick their favorites, but I just like them all equally for the detailed and intricate story that is told. Sure, there were a lot of things from the books that never made it into the movies, but I think that they did a fantastic job, and The Half-Blood Prince was no exception.
Top 10 Favorite Parts
- The Potions class where Harry wins the Felix Felicis
- Dumbledore showing Harry his collected memories.
- Katie Bell is cursed.
- Hermione is in tears because of Ron and Lavender
- Ron falls under the Love potion’s influence.
- Harry nearly murders Draco
- Ginny kisses Harry
- The Use of the Liquid Luck potion.
- Dumbledore drinking the torture potion, and then wielding fire.
- The death of Dumbledore, and everyone lighting the tips of their wands in homage.